Milk, For All it's Worth

What do you reach for after a hard run? Not a carton of chocolate milk? Consider it next time. A new study concludes that chocolate milk is an effective postexercise drink that speeds recovery. According to the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, Indiana University researchers had nine men perform cycling intervals, rest for 4 hours, then bike an endurance trial to exhaustion.

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At the beginning of the rest and again halfway through it, they drank either chocolate milk, a sports drink, or a carbohydrate-replacement drink. Those receiving chocolate milk or the sports drink cycled 54 percent longer than the men who relied on the carb-replacement drink. Study author Joel Stager, Ph.D., favors the flavored milk: "The chocolate contains antioxidants, and the milk has carbs, protein, and fat, plus micro- and macronutrients."

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